Machine to machine (M2M) communications refers to communication between two machines. With more and more data being collected automatically from sensors and with machines becoming more and more intelligent, M2M is becoming more important.
Machines may communicate with one another via wireless or wired systems. Often, a machine such as a sensor or meter captures an event which generates data such as a temperature or an inventory level. The data may be communicated through a network to an application such as a software program that translates the data into meaningful information such as order items for restocking.
Often, these M2M services require many person years of software and hardware to accomplish.